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My Tales and Tips

Tag Archives: body talk

Gluten Tips–Joint Pain

22 Monday Jul 2013

Posted by yeloros in gluten

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body talk, celiac disease, food journal, gluten sensitivity, gluten-free diet, joint pain, wheat allergy

Joint pain at wooden mannequin isolated on whiteAre you one of the millions suffering joint aches and pains that interfere in your life? Are you spending big bucks on pain meds, injections, ibuprofen, and other remedies to relieve that pain? Whether mild or excruciating, pain is your body warning you that something is wrong. What if your pain is being caused by what you’re eating?

As I recounted in the post “Goodbye Arthur” (now in the archives), I thought I had arthritis or that perhaps I was a candidate for a hip or knee replacement. Continuing exercise class was out of the question when even raising my arms became too painful. It was an effort to get in and out of the car as well as the bed. Thankfully, I had been keeping a food journal for a long time and I soon identified the “wrongdoer” — gluten, the protein found in wheat. I was tested for celiac disease, and to my relief, the test was negative; however I am gluten sensitive. There’s a wide range of symptoms associated with gluten, and joint pain is just one of them (brain fog is another).

9729249_sAll the goodies we love to eat, from mouth watering pastry to tempting pasta; from scrumptious cakes and fluffy croissants, to crunchy coating on chicken; if it’s made from wheat, rye or barley, it will cause much distress for those of us who can’t tolerate gluten. Many of those foods can now be purchased gluten-free but some are rated low in vitamins, minerals, fiber, texture and taste, and high in fat, cost and calories.

Unfortunately, gluten is often hidden in some brands of a surprising number of products and foods, such as beer and popcorn. For a better understanding of celiac disease, gluten sensitivity, and wheat allergy, read the post “Tips–Gluten No-No’s” (in archives). There you’ll find information about other grains considered safe as well as those to avoid. Also included is a list of ingredients to watch out for.

?????Why not start your own food journal and then really pay attention to “body talk” to see which foods trigger your symptoms? Perhaps you’ll discover that the problems inflicting misery on your body are similar to symptoms of gluten sensitivity or celiac disease. But wait! Before switching to a gluten-free diet, discuss your findings with your doctor. If he or she decides to test you for celiac disease, in order to get an accurate diagnosis, gluten needs to be in your system, otherwise the test will show a false negative. However, even if you don’t have celiac disease, your symptoms could be due to gluten sensitivity, then you can eliminate gluten because it’s a problem for you.

(A recent article on health stated that 35% of adults search online to try to diagnose health conditions, and believe it or not, 41% of those who self-diagnose had their condition confirmed by a physician.)

Good luck!

Watch for a series of posts on “Gluten Tips” and a series on “Body Talk” revealing other health issues many of us are experiencing. Hopefully, you’ll be able to identify the culprit robbing your well-being.

Always check with your primary care doctor before making any major changes.

Related post: “No Wheat, No Weight? — Part 2”

Let us know your thoughts. You’re the reason for this blog (see the “About You” page). So please, leave a message in the Comments section below and arrow down to click the Post Comment button. What you say may be just the thing to make someone’s day. Thanks.

Images:

  • fotolia.com
  • 123rf.com

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Goodbye Arthur

03 Tuesday Apr 2012

Posted by yeloros in mind/body

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aches and pains, arthritis, body talk, celiac disease, couscous, daily food journal, fatigue, gluten-free, nuts, pasta, seeds, semolina, wheat additives, wheat-free

green round headsHave you ever noticed how your body is really good about talking to you, hoping you will be wise enough to listen?

I was all set to go to the doctor to get medication for what I thought was arthritis and dreading the possibility of having a knee or hip replacement.  However, I was pretty sure that arthritis is not “sometimey”.  So, because I’m used to listening to my “body talk”, I knew I had better pay attention.

In really bad times, the pain was so intense in my legs, knees, thighs, and hips, I thought they would actually break.  It was an effort to walk, sit, stand or even get in and out of the car or bed. Trying to raise my arms in exercise class was so painful I had to stop the lessons.  I was also extremely tired most of the time.  Consequently, I decided to look back through my Daily Food Journal to see if this pain could be caused by something I was eating.  I’ve been keeping a journal for a very long time, ever since I had similar symptoms years ago.  At that time, I was surprised to discover that two of my favorites,  nuts and seeds, were the offenders, so I have carefully avoided them at all cost.

Looking back through the journal this time, I noticed that I was eating a lot of whole wheat bread and many other wheat products.  Sure enough, when I went wheat-free, the symptoms stopped.  But then they would start again, even though I had stopped eating all wheat–or so I thought.  Much to my dismay, there it was in black and white.  The aches and pains came back in spades when I ate couscous or pasta, yes, good ole PASTA.

How could this be?  Well pasta, couscous and a variety of other foods are made from something called semolina.  Without hesitation, off I went to Google and what do you know?  Semolina is the granular product made from durum WHEAT!  Needless to say,  I stop eating the obvious wheat products.  In the process, I learned that lots of foods you might never suspect contain wheat additives and there are many gluten no-no’s to watch out for.

My doctor ruled out celiac disease well before I eliminated gluten; however, I am gluten sensitive and will regret it if I eat anything with gluten. Coincidentally, the biggest revelation came in the form of ENERGY!!!  The extreme fatigue vanished with the elimination of gluten.  For me, being tired was normal, just one of the many “pains” that come along in life.  I thought everybody was tired.  Well apparently not.  Now I can walk from one end of the mall to the other, go up to the next level and do it again, which was totally out of the question before.

Could there be something in your diet destroying your well-being?

Maya Angelou says that when you know better, you do better.  Doing better in your case could be as simple as keeping your own food journal to help pinpoint problems you may be having. For instance, my sister started keeping one and discovered that her “hay fever” was caused by the type of honey she was putting in her tea!

We are victims of so many ailments beyond our control.  Why suffer needlessly from our self-made conditions, when all we have to do is be more attentive when our body is telling us that something is wrong?  Look for the root cause and not merely treat the symptoms!

Since we are all aiming for longevity, wouldn’t it be wonderful to live many more years in optimal health?

Incidentally, I thanked my body for telling me to investigate the cause for so much pain, and oh yeah, Goodbye Arthur Ritis.

Read the posts “Tips-Gluten No-No’s” and “No Wheat, No Weight?- Part 1”and “No Wheat, No Weight? – Part 2”

Click on “Fannie’s Kitchen” for “Savory Gluten-Free Muffins” recipe

I am anxious to hear your story.

More information see:WebMD.com/gluten-free

Images from: 123RF.com

Check with your health care provider before making any major dietary changes.

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